Wagon-brake



2Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

V. T. SWEENEY. WAGON BRAKE.

No. 484,687. Patented Oct. 18, 1892 WITNESSES. INVENTOH 3. (12% fi gATTORNEYS.

n PETERS co., mo1mnuc.,i-7isumaron, u. c.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

V. T'. SWEENEY.

WAGON BRAKE.

N0. 484,687. Patented 0013. 18,1892.

INVENTOI? 8 W/TNESSES. j. 01%

v ATTORNEYS.

UNITED STATES PATENT UFEICE.

VARDIMAN TAYLOR SWEENEY, OF SPRINGFIELD, KENTUCKY.

WAGON-BRAKE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 484,687, dated October18, 1892.

Application filed April 21, 1892.

To all whom idmay concern.-

Be it known that I, VARDIMAN TAYLOR SWEENEY, of Springfield, in thecounty of Washington and State of Kentucky, have invented a new anduseful Improvement in Wagon-Brakes, of which the following is a full,clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to an improvement in wagon-brakes, and has for itsobject to provide a brake of exceedingly simple and durable constructionand capable of ready application to any form of running-gear; and theobject of the brake mechanism is to apply a brake directly andpositively to both the front and the rear wheels of the vehicle or tothe rear wheels only by simply backing the team.

Another object of the invention is to provide a means whereby the teammay be backed, when necessity may demand, without applying the brakes,and whereby this result may be accomplished by the driver of the team inan expeditious and convenient manner.

The invention consists in the novel construction andcombination of theseveral parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth, and pointed outin the claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar figures and letters of referenceindicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure l is a plan view of the running-gear of a vehicle, illustratingthe application thereto of the brake mechanism. Fig. 2 is a perspectiveView of that portion of the tongue -which is connected with therunning-gear.

Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal section taken through the axle,showing the hounds, reach, and tongue in side elevation. Fig. A is adetail view of one form of take-up mechanism used in connection with thebrake mechanism. Fig. 5 is asection taken, practically, on theline 5 5of Fig. 3. Fig. dis a section taken, essentially, on the line 6 6 ofFig. 3 through the tongue; and Fig. 7 is a section taken, practically,on the line 7 7 of Fig. 3, the said section being taken through one ofthe rear hounds.

The axle 10, the reach 11, and the forward and rear hounds 12 and 13 maybe of any approved construction. The rear brake-bar A, carrying thebrake-shoes 14, is suspended be- Serial No. 430,140. (No model.)

low the rear hounds and in front of the rear wheels, preferably throughthe medium of links 15, connected with a cross-bar 16, attached to therear hounds and extending beyond the sides thereof. The supporting-bar16 of the rear brake-bar A is so located with respect to the rear Wheelsthat when the brake is permitted to swing to its normal position thebrake-shoes will be carried out of engagement with the rear Wheels, asshown in Figs. 1 and 3. Ayoke 17 is secured, preferably, upon each endof a crossbar 18,the said bar being attached to the under face of therear hounds, asshown in Fig. 1, and upon thebar within each yoke afriction-roller 19 is held to turn; but if in practice it is founddesirable the rollers and their yokes may be secured directly to thesides of the hounds. A rope or chain is passed over each of the rollers19, the rope or chain at one side of the running-gear being designatedas 20 and the other at the opposite side as 21. These ropes or chainsafter having been passed downward over the friction-rollers 19 aresecured in any suitable or approved manner to the brake-beam A. Both ofthe ropes or chains 20 and 21 are carried forward in two sections,(designated as a and a',) and the forward sections of the ropes orchains 20 and 21 are passed through eyes 22, secured, respectively, oneat each side of the reach, at the forward end thereof, as is shown inFig. 5, and after passing through these eyes both forward sections ofboth of the ropes 20 and 21 are secured to the base portion of atriangularly-shaped link 23, the ropes or chains being so disposed thatone will be attached to the link near each end of the latter. A singlerope or chain 24. is rigidly attached to the apex or angular portion ofthe link 23, and this rope is passed upward over a friction-roller 25,journaled upon a rod 26, extending from one forward hound to the other,and after passing over the friction-pulley the end of the rope 24 isattached firmly to the inner end of the tongue B by means of an eyebolt27 or equivalent fastening device.

The sections a and a of the ropes or chains 20 and 21 are connected bytension devices 0. These tension devices may be of any approved orwell-known construction-as, for instance, a turnbuckle; or, as shown inFigs. 1 and 4, the tension device may consist of a plate 28,

attached to one section of the rope and provided with a series ofapertures, and a bar 29, secured to the opposing section of the rope,which bar is provided with a stud at one end, adapted to enter any ofthe recesses in the plate 28; or, as is shown also in Fig. 1, inconnection with the rope 20, the sections may be connected by means of achain 31, which chain is attached to the section a, for instance, at oneend and is passed through a ring 32, secured to the section a, the otherend of the chain being provided with a hook 33, adapted to enter any oneof the links between the two sections of the rope. The object of thetension devices is to take up any slack that may exist in the ropes orchains 20 or 21 owing to the expansion or contraction of the ropes or tolong usage.

The tongue B is provided with a longitudinal slot 34 near its inner end,and the attachment between the tongue and the forward hounds is eifectedby passing a bolt 35 through the hounds, as shown in Fig. 6, andlikewise through the slot in the tongue. That portion of the tonguewhich extends in direction of the forward end of the reach is flattenedand is provided with apertures to receive eyebolts or like devicestwo innumberone of which has been heretofore referred to and designated by thereference-numeral 27, and I will designate the eyebolt to be passedthrough the second aperture by the reference-numeral 36, the aperturesbeing respectively designated as 37 and 38. It will thus be observedthat by reason of this construction the tongue may be given a lateral orsliding movement between the forward hounds, and this movement isordinarily limited by a bracket 39, employed as a fulcrum for thewhiffletree 40, engaging with a stop-bar 41, attached to the outer faceof the forward hounds, as shown in both Figs. 1 and 3.

In frontof the bracket 39 a keeper 42, preferably of angularconstruction, is attached to the upper face of the tongue, and when itis desired that the tongue should not have backward movement this keeperis engaged by a latch 43, (shown in detail in Fig. 6 and in position inFig. 3,) which latch is fulcrumed upon the forward hounds and may becarried down ward to an engagement with the keeper and readily removedfrom engagement therewith.

In the operation of the brake, the latch 43 being carried out ofengagement with the keeper 42, the moment that the team backs the tongueis carried rearward and the rope 24, being attached to the tongue andpassing over the pulley 25 above the tongue, will be drawn forward, andas this rope is attached to the link 23 the link will be carried in thesame direction, and likewise the main brake ropes or chains 20 and 21,secured to the link, which action of the brake ropes or chains willapply the brake-shoes of the rear brake to the rear wheels, and thebrakes will remain on as long as the tongue is held in its backed orrear- Ward position; but the moment that the team starts ahead the link23 moves to its normal position, as tension upon the rope 24 18relieved, and the weight of the brake-beam A will, owing to theslackening of the brakeropes 20 and 21, drop it in such manner that itslinks 15 will he vertical,in which position the brake-shoes are removedfrom engagement with the wheels. When it is desired to back the vehiclewithout applying the brakes, the latch 43 is carried down until itengages with the back of the keeper 42, and the said latch will preventthe tongue from having the necessary backward movement to apply thebrakes.

I have above described the application of the brake on the manipulationof the tongue or pole of the vehicle to the rear wheels only; but brakesmaybe applied in connection with the front wheels and applied andremoved simultaneously with the brakes of the rear wheels. This isaccomplished in thefollowing manner: Upon the same rod 26 upon which thefriction-pulleyys journaled a second pulley 44 is loosely mounted, thetwo pulleys being inclosed by a yoke 45 to prevent them from havinglateral movement,

and a sheaved pulley 46 is secured to the forward bolsterimmediatelyabove the reach, while, preferably, a small friction-roller47 is located upon the axle beneath the reach.

The bar 41 upon the forward hounds, which constitutes astop to limit therearward movement of the pole or tongue, may be utilized to hold infront of the forward wheelsabrakebeam D, provided with brake-shoes (Z,the brake-beam being connected with the bar 41 by means of links 61 ortheir equivalent, and when the brake-beam is at rest, in which positionit is shown in Fig. 3, the brake-shoes are out of engagement with thewheels;

At or near'the center of the forward brakebeam D one end of a singlerope or chain 48 is secured. This rope or chain is passed up over thefriction-pulley 47, thence over the upper sheavedpulley 46, and thenover the friction pulley 44, carried by the forward hounds, and finallythe rope or chain 48 is carried to an engagement with the second eyebolt36 at the inner end of the tongue or pole. Thus when the tongue orpoleis pushed backward tension in a forward direction will be impartedto the rope or chain 48 at its upper end, which will cause thebrake-beam, with which the rope or chain is connected, to be drawn intolocking engagement with the forward wheels of the vehicle.

This device is not only simple and durable and capable of attachment toany running gear, but through its medium a brake may be applied to boththe front and rear wheels of a vehicle whpnever the team is backed andremoved whenever the team is caused to advance, and, further, the devicemay also be manipulated in such a manner that the team may be backed,when necessary, without apbeam, which draft ropes or chains are led forward and are connected at their forward ends, and another rope or chainconnected with the connected draft-ropes and passed over thefriction-pulley above the tongue and secured to the pole or tonguerearward of the pulley, as and for the purpose specified.

2. The combination,with the running-gear of a vehicle, a tongue havingsliding movement in the running-gear, and a brake-beam the draft ropesor chains of which are connected with the tongue, the beam beingoperated from the tongue, of a keeper located upon the tongue and apivoted latch located upon the running-gear, the latch being adapted forengagement with the keeper, whereby when the latch and keeper engage thetongue will be prevented from moving, as and for the purpose set forth.

3. The combination, with the running-gear of a vehicle, a tongue havinglateral sliding movement in the running-gear and provided at its innerend with a fastening device, and

a pulley supported by the runningear above the rear end of the tongue,of a brake-beam suspendedby vertical connections from the running-gear,ropes or chains connected with the brake-beam and carried rearward, the

said ropes or chains being capable of free end movement and beingprovided at their forward ends with a link connection, and another ropeor chain attached to the link, carried over the friction-pulley, andsecured to the fastening device of the tongue, which de- -vice isrearward of the friction-pulley, as and for the purpose set forth. 4E.The combination, with the running-gear of a vehicle, a tongue havinglateral movement therein, and a brake-beam suspended from therunning-gear, of ropes or chains connected with the brake-beam andadapted to assist in its application, the said ropes or chains beingmade in sections and the said sections united by tension devices, and athird .rope or chain connected with both of the draft ropes or chainsand carried over guide devices secured to the hounds, the third rope orchain being also attached to the tongue at the rear of the guidedevices, as and for the purpose specified.

5. The combination, With the running-gear of a vehicle, a tongue havingsliding movement therein and provided with a keeper, and a latch carriedby the running-gear and adapted for engagement with the keeper, of abrakebeam having a link connection with the run hing-gear and a draftchain or rope attached to the brake-beam and passed over guide devicesalso attached to the running-gear, one of the'guide devices beingforward of the inner end of the tongue, the said rope or chain afterpassing over the latter device being attached at the rear end of thetongue, as and for the purpose specified.

VARDIMAN TAYLOR SWEENEY. W'itnesses:

ROBERT NoE,

W. H. SWEENEY.

